


Mate Mix-Up

by 1talian1ce



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alpha Dean Winchester, Alpha Gabriel (Supernatural), Alpha Gabriel/Omega Sam Winchester, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Implied Mpreg, M/M, Misunderstandings, Omega Castiel (Supernatural), Omega Castiel/Alpha Dean Winchester, Omega Sam Winchester, Scent Marking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-28
Updated: 2020-06-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 07:40:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,217
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24960034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/1talian1ce/pseuds/1talian1ce
Summary: One fateful day, Sam follows his nose and is led to his mate. However, he wasn't expecting to find that his mate was already involved with someone else - namely, his elder brother, Dean.
Relationships: Castiel & Sam Winchester, Castiel/Dean Winchester, Gabriel/Sam Winchester
Comments: 5
Kudos: 233





	Mate Mix-Up

**Author's Note:**

> Hello. This work is not beta'd, so I do apologize for any mistakes.

The moment Sam enters the small restaurant, he’s struck with the almost overpowering aromas of raspberry, clove, and vanilla. It’s an odd combination, he thinks, but tries to block it out as he searches for his brother. He’d come here under Dean’s request (as in, Dean basically badgered him into it), so that his brother could introduce him to his mate. They weren’t officially mated yet, but his brother had confided in him that this man was “the one.” Dean wasn’t exactly known for being particularly committed to one person, so it’d piqued Sam’s curiosity that someone had apparently managed to tame his brother.

It didn’t take long for Sam to spot Dean – even for an alpha, he tended to exude a commanding presence – and Sam found himself striding toward the intimate corner booth where Dean awaited him. He made two additional observations on the way; one, Dean was currently alone, so the mystery man must not have arrived yet. The second – and most prominent note – was that with every step he took toward his brother, the stronger the scent from before continued to become.

Raspberry, clove, and vanilla.

Sam couldn’t help the frown that crossed his face. It almost appeared as though the scent was coming _from_ Dean, but that couldn’t be right. As brothers, their scents shared certain similarities, despite their designations. To him, Dean always smelt of leather and engine grease, with a woodsy undertone that both Winchesters possessed. However, Dean’s had that spicy edge to it that many alphas seemed to emanate, while – according to Dean – Sam’s own woodsy undertone was sweeter, as was common for an omega like him. Never once had Sam associated raspberry, clove, or vanilla with his brother, so it made no sense that those particular scents looked to be so prominent now.

Sam continues to ponder on this as he makes it to the booth and settles into a seat across from his grinning brother. “Hey, Sammy.”  
  
“It’s Sam.” Came the automatic reply.

Dean just rolls his eyes. “Whatever you say, Sammy.”

Sam doesn’t bother to correct him a second time. It would do no good if he did – Dean had always, and likely _would_ always, call him Sammy.

His train of thought is abruptly derailed as that scent – still raspberry, clove and vanilla – suddenly spikes in intensity, and Sam glances around in confusion. He notices a man heading in their direction, wearing a rumpled suit and a backwards tie, dark hair a disheveled mess, eyes bluer than any Sam could recall seeing. He’s fairly attractive, really, and the scent is somehow now coming from him as well, which only served to confuse Sam further. When the man reaches their booth, he pauses at the sight of Sam, before a warm smile crosses his face. “You must be Sam. I’m Castiel Novak. Dean has told me much about you, and it’s nice to finally meet you.” A hand is held out to him, and Sam finds himself shaking it in greeting.

This must be the mysterious mate Dean had briefly spoken of. “Nice to meet you, too, Castiel.” Sam replies, releasing his hand. Once he does, the man – _Castiel_ – bends over to lift a discarded trench coat into sight before taking its previous place beside Dean.

 _The trench coat_. It had obviously been beside Dean when Sam entered the café, and it definitely seemed to be saturated with that scent. No wonder Sam had assumed it had been coming from Dean himself.

Castiel delicately folds said trench coat and sets it in his lap before leaning over to lightly peck Dean’s cheek, to which Dean gains an almost goofy expression on his face. Oh, his brother was _so_ gone on this man it was almost comical.

Sam would have to tease him about it later.

For now, the three of them make light, friendly conversation after ordering their meals, and the camaraderie continues even after the meals are consumed. Castiel seemed like a genuinely nice guy – almost the complete opposite of Dean, really – but he complimented his brother in such a way that it was almost as though Castiel’s mere presence appeared to mellow Dean out. It was nice to see, and Sam was certainly happy for them, but…

But that scent.

It did not once dissipate while the three of them were dining together, and only once they’d parted ways and Sam was heading home did it finally disperse. Sam hadn’t even realized it had been clouding his mind until the fresh air began to clear the fog away. And that brought Sam to an even worse realization.

If a scent were affecting him that strongly, it could only mean one thing, and that thought filled him with a cold dread.

Somehow, Castiel was _his_ mate, too.

-

For weeks, the three continued to have regular meetings. Occasionally, it was for an evening drink or for a quick cup of coffee, but more often than not, it was for an entire meal.

Sam hated those days the most.

It was apparent that Dean wanted them to spend time together, wanted them to get along and like each other, and Sam would say that he’d succeeded. Castiel was extremely likeable and Sam did enjoy his company, but every single time they met, that overpowering scent came with him. It was odd, though, because even though Sam had come to the conclusion that Castiel was somehow his mate, he didn’t find himself particularly attracted to the man. That’s not to say Castiel was unattractive in any way – that’d be a downright lie – but he just wasn’t Sam’s type.

And really, it just didn’t make any sense.

For one, Castiel was a fellow omega – it was painfully obvious during their first meeting. Sam had nothing against an omega/omega relationship, but for two omegas to actually mate was a rare occurrence. That inconsistency aside, Castiel was clearly meant to be Dean’s mate. Anyone who spent more than ten seconds with them could see that; in fact, Sam would even go so far as to call them true mates, if such a thing existed. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, Castiel didn’t seem to react to Sam’s scent at all, though Sam certainly found himself reacting to Castiel’s scent in uncomfortable ways. But no matter how unlikely it appeared to be, all signs still continued to suggest that Castiel was somehow Sam’s mate.

And that in itself brought him another problem; he hadn’t yet told Dean of his discovery.

And how could he, really? Dean was so very happy with Castiel, so much calmer and more centered. Sam didn’t have the heart to take that away from him, could never hurt his older brother in such a way, especially not after everything Dean had given up over the course of their lives to make sure Sam had everything he needed to succeed and achieve his goals.

He just… couldn’t. In fact, he outright refused, even if it cost him his own happiness in the long run.

And that was that.

-

For the next few months, Sam continued to remind himself of that as he began to distance himself from the couple, in the hopes that biology had been wrong and his attraction to Castiel’s scent would eventually go away. However, the few times Dean had managed to talk him into a get-together made it clear that his efforts made little difference. That scent was always present, always overpowering, and it was almost driving Sam crazy. He was quickly running out of lies – he hated himself for lying to Dean to begin with – but he didn’t know what else to do. He was at his breaking point after just those few meetings.

Despite his earlier assertion, he was quickly concluding that he had to talk to Dean about this. He didn’t want to hurt his brother, but maybe Dean could shed some light on why he was reacting so strongly to Castiel’s scent. And even if he couldn’t, maybe he’d at least stop insisting that they spend so much time together.

It all came to a head one Saturday afternoon. Dean had once again managed to talk Sam into a get-together, and Sam was currently hesitating outside the door of the café, trying to inhale as much fresh air as possible before inevitably being swallowed by the cloying scent of raspberry, clove, and vanilla. When he felt as ready as he was going to be, he stepped inside, and was hit with a wave of déjà vu (as well as a surge of that overpowering scent). Not only was this the same restaurant that he’d met Castiel in, but that scent was stronger than it’d ever been, and Sam nearly buckled at the knees because of it. Once he’d managed to recover, he forces himself to move, knowing instinctively that Dean would be in the same booth as before.

He’s proven right as he approaches said booth to find Dean, Castiel, and a third person waiting for him, though all he could make out of the newcomer from behind was his honey-colored hair. It wasn’t until he was right beside the booth and the man had turned to look up at him that Sam could fully see him.

“Holy shit, a moose!”

The words were exclaimed in a silky-smooth voice and came from smirking lips, the man’s eyes – the same honeyed shade as his hair – dancing with mirth. The humor slowly began to fade as Castiel spoke up, though Sam barely registered the “Was that really necessary, Gabriel?” as the pair continued to stare at each other.

Wordlessly, the man – _Gabriel_ , his mind distantly supplies - stands and clambers up onto his seat, reaching to pull Sam close by his hair and bury his nose against his neck, deeply inhaling whilst ignoring the protests from their audience. Sam himself didn’t seem to mind, finding himself subtly inhaling Gabriel’s own potent scent – raspberry, clove, vanilla, and something masculine that was definitely _alpha_ \- in the meanwhile.

After a few moments, Gabriel draws back with dilated eyes – a look that Sam is certain is mirrored on his own face.

“ _You!_ ” They both exclaim, in such perfect unison that it could have been rehearsed.

Gabriel dissolves into laughter, and Sam very nearly does the same, so relieved he is to realize that the scent that’d been clouding his mind all this time was coming not from Castiel, but from this man instead. His _mate_.

When Sam tires of the laughter, he swoops in to silence Gabriel with a soft, yet insistent, kiss.

It absolutely does the charm, and when they pull away, they’re smiling at each other. “I’m Sam.”

“Hey, Sam.” The other man replies, playful smirk back on his lips and golden eyes twinkling. “I’m Gabriel, Cassie’s older brother.”

Sam’s eyebrow quirks at that bit of information – he hadn’t known Castiel had an older brother – but he decided to address that later. For now, he was certain the two of them had some explaining to do to their respective brothers.

-

Eventually, the two men settle down – side-by-side and holding hands beneath the table – to clarify what had been happening so that Dean and Castiel were no longer left out of the loop. Sam was a bit embarrassed to admit that he’d thought Castiel to be his mate – though both Gabriel and Dean were highly amused by this. That is, until Gabriel himself confessed that the first time he’d met Dean, he’d caught Sam’s scent on him and believed the elder Winchester to be _his_ mate. He didn’t know what to do with that knowledge, and so he began to unintentionally scent-mark Castiel’s clothes – the trench coat, in particular – as a subconscious attempt at attracting Dean. It’d completely backfired when neither Dean nor Castiel seemed to take notice of this behavior. However, Gabriel’s scent was still strong enough that Sam was able to pick it up every time the three of them met, and because Gabriel was his mate, that scent still overpowered Castiel’s own scent and even Dean’s at times.

When all was said and done, the group laughed and joked about the mix-up, ate a nice meal together, and no one uttered a single word when Sam and Gabriel left the establishment still hand-in-hand.

And thus, Sam met his _real_ mate – one Gabriel Novak.

-

_Several years later…_

Sam’s slowly awoken one morning by light kisses against the side of his neck – making sure to cover the scarred mating mark proudly displayed there – and a gentle hand caressing over his swollen stomach. He groans quietly as he rolls just enough to seek out his mate’s lips with his own, the two leisurely kissing until quick footsteps are heard nearing their room. They pull apart just as their daughter – nearly identical to Gabriel in appearance – bounds into the room and climbs up onto the bed to cuddle with her parents. Sam smiles fondly, slowly inhaling the combined scents of their family – his own woodsy undertone was there, but it was overshadowed by Gabriel’s unique scent, something else their daughter had inherited from her alpha father, and Sam couldn’t be happier. After all, it was that scent that had ultimately led him to Gabriel – his mischievous mate - and that he’d fallen in love with years ago.

Raspberry, clove, and vanilla.


End file.
